Chapter Twenty-One
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Emmett came home to the house at Hampstead Heath in the middle of November. With him was his infant daughter, named Margaret after Rosalie's mother, Rosalie was not.
"She had a hard labor," Emmett said when the greetings had been exchanged and they had all settled down in Edward and Bella's privy chamber. The two babies were laid in Ward's large cradle near the fireplace, sound asleep. Emmett had laid the swaddled bundle of his baby beside Ward and Ward had poked curiously at the blankets covering everything but her face before dropping off to sleep beside her.
"She almost died," Emmett continued. "It took two months before she was well enough to get out of bed and afterward, something had changed. She was ... melancholy, I suppose. I know of no other way to describe it. When I told her I was returning to court, she said she wanted to stay behind at Cullen Hall. The Queen gave permission, and I didn't think that either of you would object to not having her here." Emmett leaned over in his chair and peered into the cradle to check on his baby for the dozenth time.
"The first time I saw Margaret, I finally understood," Emmett said softly. "They thought I would be displeased because she was a girl. They were almost afraid to tell me, but then the midwife brought her out to me and ..." Emmett stopped, clearly at a loss for words.
"You look well, Brother," Edward said. "You look ... happy."
"I am happy," Emmett replied. "And I am well. I have not had a drop of drink since I held my child in my arms for the first time."
Edward's jaw dropped. "Truly?"
"Truly. I was sick ... sick unto death, I thought. Father Jacob gave me last rites."
"Why did you not send for me?" Edward asked.
Emmett shook his head. "I did not wish for you to see me thus, to see how low my sin had brought me. But God was merciful, and now I have my Maggie."
"She's beautiful," Edward praised.
"She's my miracle," Emmett said. "I cannot explain it. I looked down into her little face the first time I beheld her and felt such shame for what I had become. I wanted to be worthy of her, to be the father that she deserves. I know that you won't believe me, and I certainly understand that, for I would probably discredit such a tale myself, but everything has changed for me, Edward."
Edward was silent for a long moment. The man sitting before him was one that he hadn't seen for nearly three years. Emmett's eyes were bright and intelligent, not bleary and dulled. His hands no longer shook and the scent of stale alcohol no longer lingered about his person. He looked ... awake for the first time in years. "I believe you, Brother, and I am so happy to have you back."
"What of Rosalie?" Bella asked.
"I don't know." Emmett ran his hand through his hair, which was longer than Bella had ever seen it, a dark mop of curls. "Something changed for her, too, the day Maggie was born. All of the soothsayers she had hired swore that she carried a boy. After her long and terrible labor, he was delivered of a girl and that seemed to break her in a way that the pain and travail had not. She didn't hold her, didn't even want to look at her. I tried. I thought if she could see how perfect and beautiful that Maggie was that she would change her mind, but she just turned away. She wanted me to send Maggie out to live with a wetnurse, but I refused, and she told me just to keep Maggie far away from her. She even burned all of the beautiful clothing she had embroidered for the baby, because she said it was for our son. It was like she thought Maggie had taken that son away from her."
"Some women have a sadness in the soul after their baby is born," Bella said. "Perhaps Rosalie is one of them. She may get better. I know of some herbs that may-"
"She does have a sickness of the soul, but it's not on account of the baby," Emmett said flatly. "I told her before I left: she will wear my ring and my name, but I want nothing to do with her. I am not cruel and I will not put her aside, but I will not be a husband to her any longer."
"Did she change after you beat her?" Bella asked.
"Beat her? I never beat her," Emmett said, sounding bewildered. "She told you I beat her?"
"I heard rumors from the servants ..."
He shook his head. "I threatened to cut off her funds and take away her jewels and she wept for days but I swear that I never laid a hand on her. I didn't need to. Threatening to take away her money was punishment enough. I think she would have rather I had beaten her than threatened to cut off her allowance." Emmett sounded disgusted with Rosalie's avarice. "I'm sorry I brought her into our family, Bella."
"I'm sure there must be a reason why she-"
Edward laughed softly. He tugged his wife out of her chair onto his lap and hugged her. "That's my Bella, always trying to think the best of people."
"I think she's sad and scared," Bella said. "That can make a person do things they wouldn't ordinarily do."
"Like what the Queen did to Princess Elizabeth?" Edward asked grimly. He had never fully forgiven Mary for sending Elizabeth off to Woodstock. She'd refused to read Elizabeth's letters or listen to her complaints about the condition in which she was housed, refused to discuss the situation with Edward. They were at a stalemate: Mary said she would not accept Elizabeth back at court unless she admitted her guilt and begged for forgiveness, and Elizabeth would not confess to something she said she had not done.
"Bess is coming back to court soon," Bella said. "I meant to tell you earlier, but I forgot in the excitement of Emmett's arrival. Phillip told Mary to bring Bess back so she could be present at the baby's birth."
Emmett and Edward exchanged glances. "What did Mary say?"
"She was unhappy about it, but she will obey her husband's wishes." That was putting it mildly. After Phillip had left the room, Mary had burst into tears and it was all that Bella and Susan Clarencieux could do to calm her down, lest she harm the child she carried. Phillip rarely came to the Queen's chambers and now that he had, it was to order her to bring Elizabeth back to court, just like his longed-for letter had been about her. Bella and Susan had told Mary that it was natural for a husband to want to heal rifts in his wife's family, but Mary wasn't accepting soothing platitudes.
"He thinks it's wise to have the heir to the throne at hand in case Mary dies in childbirth," Edward said. And Bella feared that was the conclusion the Queen had reached as well.
A wail came from the crib, and Bella's mother's ears instantly discerned that it wasn't Ward. She went over to the cradle as Emmett lifted Margaret out of it and gently bounced her in his arms and murmured to her, but Margaret yelled even louder.
"She's hungry," Bella told him. She did not know Margaret's voice as well as her son's. She could tell when Ward's cries meant he was hungry, or wet, or just wanted to be held. Margaret's wail sounded like a "feed me" cry to her.
"Alice, fetch her nurse," Emmett commanded. Alice, who sat in the back of the room, talking quietly with Father Jasper, rose and curtseyed, even if her expression was a little petulant at having her precious time with Jasper interrupted.
"No, Alice, don't bother with it," Bella said. "I can feed Margaret."
Everyone looked shocked by the idea.
Bella laughed. "Why not? I have plenty."
"You are a duchess, not a wetnurse," Edward said.
Bella restrained herself from rolling her eyes. Selkie women often left their babies in the care of another mother while they went out for a swim, and if the baby became hungry, that woman would feed it, the same as she would feed her own child, and if a selkie mother was lost, another woman with a baby would take the child to feed and raise as her own. These people had such strange customs when it came to nursing. They would hire a stranger to give their babies milk, but a relative doing so shocked their sensibilities.
"You know me better than you do the nurse," Bella said to Emmett. "You know that I am healthy and that I have no vices to pass on to the baby."
Edward smiled and whispered into her ear. "Maybe one or two."
She giggled and kissed his cheek.
In Emmett's arms, Margaret wailed on. Ward whimpered and prepared to start up a sympathy cry. Bella scooped Margaret out of Emmett's arms and retreated to a quiet, shadowy corner. She first unbundled the baby from its layers of blankets and laid one of them over her shoulder for modesty's sake as she unfastened her bodice. Margaret latched on eagerly. Emmett still stood by the cradle, looking anxious. "I know that Bella would be better than the nurse, but it seems ..."
"I know," Edward said. "But if she wants to do it, I see no harm in it."
Before Bella returned Margaret to her father, she checked the baby's diaper and found that she had an awful rash. "Oh, you poor little thing." She went over to her chest and took out the cream she had made in case Ward ever had a rash, made of comfrey and chamomile, and applied it over the baby's red and bumpy skin.
"She cannot wear this," Bella said, tugging at the bands that wrapped the child's limbs.
"Best not to argue with her on that," Edward advised when Emmett opened his mouth.
"But she'll be crooked!" Emmett protested. Margaret cooed and waved her freed limbs in the air.
"Ward wasn't swaddled and he seems to be growing straight."
"You don't wish her to suffer from rashes, do you?" Bella demanded. "The poor thing must have been smothering under all those layers!"
Emmett surrendered, just as Edward had done, partly because he was enchanted by Margaret's joy in freedom and partly because he knew Bella's heart, and knew without a doubt that she would never do anything that would endanger a child. She met Emmett's eyes and smiled gently and then looked down at the babies, and Emmett knew that Margaret had just gained another mother.
"Your grace?"
Bella had just left the thanksgiving ceremony given at St. Paul's in celebration of the Queen's quickening, and was headed for her litter, her intent to return to her quarters to nurse the babies when the voice halted her progress. She did not recognize the man who went down on one knee in front of her. The wind blew brown leaves across the cobblestones around him and he trembled slightly, but she didn't think it was from cold.
"Yes?" she said, simply.
"Your grace, I am Edward Askew. My sister's husband, Thomas Kyme, is your lord husband's almoner."
Bella vaguely recognized the name, but she had never met her husband's almoner, who lived in the village near Cullen Hall. "I see. What is it you ask of me?"
"My sister, Anne, has been thrown out of her home by her husband. She has nowhere to go, so she came to me, but I live in one of the inns near court and my landlord will not allow me to keep a woman in my rooms, even my sister. I had hoped you might take her into your service, my lady. She is an honest, hard-working woman who will serve you well and loyally."
"Why did her husband cast her out?"
Askew hesitated. "They ... They differ in faith, your grace. Anne is a reformer. Please, your grace. Do not hold her faith against her. Father Jacob suggested I speak to you. He says that you are a kind-hearted woman and your doors are open to any in need."
Bella was startled, for she'd never heard Father Jacob have anything positive to say about her and was surprised he would offer any assistance to a Protestant. "These are dangerous times for those who do not conform," Bella said softly.
"Please, your grace," he begged. "She has lost her home, her children."
Bella's heart ached. A woman had no rights where her children were concerned. If Kyme wanted, he could forbid Anne from ever seeing her children again. Bella tried to imagine the pain she would feel if Edward took Ward from her and her eyes filled with tears. "I'll help her," she said. "Take her to our home tomorrow and speak to Kat Ashley about a position for her. And I'll have my lord husband speak to Kyme."
"Thank you, your grace," Askew said. A tear dripped down his cheek. "You cannot know how grateful I am."
Bella gave him a smile and continued on her way to her rooms. She intended to give her baby an extra kiss and one to Edward as well. Every day, something impressed upon her how extraordinarily good he was to her. She and Alice walked along quietly, both lost in thought, and so that was probably why Phillip and his gentlemen didn't notice them.
"At least you're spared having to share the old dog's bed now," one of them said and Phillip laughed.
"I tell you, it takes the strength of God himself to drink from that cup," Phillip said with an exaggerated shudder.
Hot tears burned in Bella's eyes. When he was in Mary's presence, Phillip was always very polite. He even tossed in a romantic phrase every now and then. Mary thought he loved her, and she thought he was happy in their marriage. Bella hoped she never found out about how Phillip mocked her behind her back.
Alice saw from Bella's expression that the king must have said something awful, but she was tactful enough not to ask. She opened Bella's chamber door and Bella fled inside to her retreat, the warm, safe little world she shared with her baby. She found Kat siting on the bed with Ward and Margaret, dangling a jeweled necklace above for the babies to bat with their hands. Ward seemed to really enjoy this game because he was squealing in delight, and Margaret seemed content to watch, entranced by the sparkle of the gems.
"Are you all right?" Kat asked Bella.
Bella picked up Ward and kissed his chubby little cheeks. "I'm better now," she said. She unpinned her stomacher and opened her pair of bodies with a sigh of relief. Her breasts ached all day from being pressed down by the hard fabric. She tucked Ward in the crook of her arm and he began to nurse ravenously. It was a little awkward picking up Margaret in the other arm, but she managed, and Margaret needed no assistance in latching on.
Kat bustled around checking the furniture for traces of dust. She was taking her position as Bella's housekeeper very seriously and had the poor maids terrified of missing a speck of dirt.
"You'll have a new servant joining the household," Bella said. "Her name is Anne, and she's the sister-in-law of Kyme."
"I've heard of her," Kat said and Bella was surprised.
"Really?"
"Aye, one of the kitchen maids is her cousin or some such. She was telling the other girls a few days ago about poor Anne. Her sister was his betrothed and when she died, Anne was forced to wed him in her sister's place. She said Kyme is so fanatical that he makes Mary look like an apostate. When Anne refused to stop attending her Bible meetings, he threw her out, expecting it to force her to her 'senses'. Instead she came to London. The kitchen girls are saying she's seeking a divorce."
"A divorce?" Bella was aghast. "Askew didn't say anything about that!"
"He probably thought it would come to naught. The churchmen are unlikely to grant it. She has no grounds."
Bella felt uneasy. "Maybe I shouldn't have agreed to give her a place. Do you think Edward will be angry with me?"
Kat shook her head. "The household is the wife's province. You hire whom you please. Fret not. She'll be belowstairs. Like as not, you'll never see her."
It was late that evening before Edward returned from his council duties. Bella came downstairs to greet him and had the servants bring the plate she had directed should be kept warm on the stove in the kitchen. He sat down at the table in their chamber and ate as though he hadn't seen food all day. At length, he sat back, satisfied. "Thank you, Bella. How are the children?"
"Elizabeth was a little difficult this evening. She wanted to wait up for you, but I put her to bed at her regular time."
"And the babies?"
Bella smiled, touched. "Both fine. Margaret is in her cradle in Emmett's chamber and Ward is sleeping on our bed at the moment. He looked so adorable curled up on your pillow that I couldn't move him."
"Are you certain that nursing both babies is not a strain on you?" he asked anxiously.
"I am certain. I'm very well."
He pulled her onto his lap. "I worry about you."
"I know. But Edward, I promise you, I'm fine. I'd tell you if I weren't."
He nuzzled her neck. "Have you gone for a swim recently? Would you like to go tonight?"
That sounded lovely, but his eyes were tired. "Perhaps tomorrow," she said.
"How was the thanksgiving ceremony?" he asked.
"Long," Bella replied, and he laughed.
"None of the Queen's dresses will close over her belly, so she went loosely laced to the church. 'Twas a minor scandal, but I think the Queen likes showing off her big belly."
"She looks better than she ever has before," Edward commented. "The plumpness suits her and her color is good."
"She's happy," Bella said. "That makes any woman prettier. I just wish ..."
"Wish what?"
"Phillip is not the perfect Prince she thinks he is."
"Don't I know it," Edward said grimly. "'Tis why I am so late this evening. Parliament confirmed the reunification with Rome. The Pope is once again head of the Church of England, though the nobles were careful to include a clause that ensures none of them will have to return the lands and property they were granted after King Henry destroyed the monasteries. The Crown will return the portion it still controls, which is a loss in revenue we can ill-afford. All neatly and quickly done, but Gardiner wanted a clause inserted into the bill which created Phillip regent in case Mary dies in childbirth. The council and Parliament finally assented but Phillip had to go and stick his Hapsburg jaw into the matter and ask for a coronation."
"He wants to be crowned? I thought to marriage treaty ..."
"Indeed."
Bella groaned. "Mary has said nothing about this. He must be badgering her about it."
"When? He barely visits her, or so it is said around court."
"He's very busy," Bella said automatically. And it was true. Phillip was acting as Mary's co-ruler. They signed legislation together and Phillip helped her with her administrative duties, though Mary was the one who ultimately made all of the decisions. Mary had even issued new coins which had both of their profiles on it instead of just hers.
"The council is out of control," Edward said flatly. "Factions jostling for power, constant infighting and backstabbing. I marvel much that any work gets done. And returning to the authority of the Pope has not been a popular move. The Emperor is urging Phillip to seize control, though make sure that Mary seems like the one with all the power. And Pole is insisting that now that England has been restored to the church, we need to reinstate the heresy laws."
Bella paled. "Has he the support he needs?"
"It could happen," Edward admitted.
"I'll talk to Mary," Bella said. "I know she won't want to hurt people. Surely she won't let that happen."
"I pray you are right," Edward replied. "With all my heart and soul I pray you are right."
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Historical notes:
- Tudorphiles will note that Anne Askew's time period was earlier than the one of this story, however, she is a fascinating character and the same issues which faced her were still current during Mary's reign. I claim artistic license.
- Phillip's courtiers were actually quoted as calling Mary an "old bitch", but they didn't mean it in the definition it has today of being a disagreeable woman. They meant it as a female dog.
- I've added more photos of people/places/stuff mentioned in this story to my Facebook page. The link is in my profile.